1evs1erWhat's the difference?

Which to use

“1e” and “1er” are a confusable French pair: similar on the page, but distinct in meaning, check the gloss before you choose.

#15,787
“1e” frequency rank
#893
“1er” frequency rank
16680
confusion score

Side-by-Side Comparison

Feature 1e 1er
Definition Variante orthographique de eerste. Premier, 1ᵉʳ. Premier.

Where the spellings diverge

Shared letters are muted; the letters that actually set 1e and 1er apart are highlighted. They share 2 letters in sequence, which is exactly why the eye skips the difference.

2 ch
1e
3 ch
1er

Spelling & Dictionary Insight

A purely visual mix-up. 1e (\eːɾ.stǝ\) and 1er (\pʁə.mje\) are said differently, so reading them aloud is the quickest way to catch the wrong one. On the page they stay close: they differ by 1 extra letter(s) - “1e” sits inside “1er”. Our composite confusion score for this pair is 16680, derived from the frequency rank of both members and their visual similarity.

1e is recorded at frequency rank #15,787, classified as anadj, pronounced \eːɾ.stǝ\. 1er is at rank #893, tagged as anadj, pronounced \pʁə.mje\.

Glosses for this pair are partially populated in our dataset, but the full side-by-side definitions above should still guide you to the right choice.

With a confusion score of 16680, this pair ranks #386,741 of 440,172 scored French confusable pairs - a relatively easy-to-tell-apart pair.

Orthographic DNA of 1e vs 1er

Shared letters: e. Private to "1e": -. Private to "1er": r.

"1e" · 1 letters · shape V  ·  "1er" · 2 letters · shape VC

Frequency comparison

1e#15,787
1er#893

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list

Frequently Asked Questions

Can "1e" and "1er" be used interchangeably?
No. They are said differently (\eːɾ.stǝ\ versus \pʁə.mje\) and carry different meanings; reading the sentence aloud is usually enough to catch the wrong one.
Which is more common, "1e" or "1er"?
"1er" is the more common of the two: it sits at frequency rank #893 in our French list, against #15,787 for "1e". That is a wide gap, so in ordinary text the rarer spelling is the one worth double-checking.

Remembering 1e vs 1er

The fastest way to pick the right one every time.

  • Read both glosses above and match the meaning you intend, only context separates this pair.
  • See each word in full, definition, IPA, etymology and its other confusables. Full “1e” entry
  • Browse more pairs most likely to be confused. Most confusable

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list FrequencyWords open word-frequency list